Alma College

Research assistant

June 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

New learning experiences

What I wish was different

N/A

Advice

Assuming your experiments will follow the intended schedule is not advisable

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Lab Research Student

June - August 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I enjoyed getting to understand how genetic components can correlate to visible characteristics in an individual. Outside of lab, I enjoyed collaborating and getting to know more about my colleagues research opportunities at the campus. This facilitated friendships among individuals with common fields of interests in mind.

What I wish was different

I would have loved to have another student in the lab with me to bounce ideas off of when it came to challenging topics. I would have also loved to have had a stronger relationship with those on campus within the lab. Getting to understand different peoples projects/research outside of the lab was captivating. I wish the college would have facilitated more of a collaborative effort to bring researchers on campus together.

Advice

I would recommend to any student looking to get involved with on-campus research to put their name out there to professors. If you have an interest in a particular field of study, I guarantee there will be a research opportunity on campus revolved around it. Get your name out there and build connections with the professors/students around you.

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Research Assistant

June 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

Working closely with a professor on a project that we are both passionate about and learning new techniques in a chemistry lab.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Lab assistant

June - August 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I worked on the Alma College iGEM team project and I learned a lot about synthetic biology, biochemistry lab procedures, and about iGEM itself.

What I wish was different

I wish the team was more collaborative and more student lead as we were promised instead of the professors claiming to have "executive power" and allowed only one person to work on the logo, wiki, and banner for the competition and did not allow the input of the rest if the team even though we did not agree with the artistic direction that represented the project we were working on.

Advice

I would advise that people coming into this to not expect to be including in the other parts of the project besides the lab work. If you want to work on the project then make sure you are ok with essentially being only a lab rat with no say in the creative aspect of the project and are ok with being told what to do in the lab each day.

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Customer Relations Representative

May 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

My bosses and work environment

What I wish was different

Hour changes

Advice

Work at the rec!

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IT Technician

December 2017 • Alma, MI

What I liked

The work was honestly fun and kept me busy. Co-workers were great and the hours were too.

What I wish was different

Advice

Just be willing to learn. And don't be afraid to ask questions.

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Financial services intern

June 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

It was a fun environment and a good way to learn about my college and its surrounding community.

What I wish was different

I wish I would have had more diverse duties and new tasks.

Advice

I would say being organized is huge skill that might not seem as important as it truly is.

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Grounds

May - August 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

Great work environment. Everyone is friendly and willing to help you get stuff done if needed.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Conference Moderator

July - August 2019 • Delhi, India

What I liked

I loved getting to experience a new and different culture.

What I wish was different

I only wish it hadn't been raining the whole time we were in Goa, but in many ways the rain made it more fun.

Advice

Bring a hat and don't be afraid to try the food.

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Assistant to the Presidents Office

June 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I was able to grow my personal skills and begin learning event planning and executive assistant practices.

What I wish was different

More hands on with the President of Alma College in his day-to-day.

Advice

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Resident Assistant

June - August 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I got to look out for the safety of my peers and build meaningful relationships with other students that stayed on campus over the summer.

What I wish was different

Advice

I have learned that students will have a healthy respect for you as an RA if you begin the job by setting clear expectations and build relationships with them as the season goes. Let people know you are there to first and foremost do your job because you care about their wellbeing and their community atmosphere.

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Facilites

May - August 2019 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I loved how flexible the hours were and how transparent the staff worked.

What I wish was different

Wish I would have been able to be paid more because of the labor aspect of the job.

Advice

The communication was not always on the same page, making it hard to follow urgent orders.

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Research Lab Assistant

June - August 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

It helped me gain experience in my field and help me find out what I may want to do in the future.

What I wish was different

I wish I would have taken on more responsibility from the start because I enjoyed the job a lot more once I started to take on more responsibility for my own projects.

Advice

Use your summers as opportunities to discover what you do and don't enjoy in a job.

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Front Desk Receptionist

May - August 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

The co-workers

What I wish was different

A more understanding boss

Advice

Be more sociable

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Research

May 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I loved being able to learn various lab procedures and the hands-on lab time I received over the summer. It was also amazing being able to work directly with professors and further build on relationships with them. They have invaluable knowledge and experience as well as different insights into various topics that is very enlightening.

What I wish was different

I wish the housing situation had been a little more stable, as many of us had to move at least once while staying on campus for the summer.

Advice

It is amazing to get to know your professors as just more than teachers. They have such different backgrounds and life experiences, and are a wealth of information. Don't be afraid to approach them outside of the classroom: go to their office hours, say hello to them around campus, etc.

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Toxicology Research Assistant

June - August 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I loved the purpose behind my work! I felt like I was making a difference in environmental toxicology. This opportunity opened a door to the various avenues of environmental science.

What I wish was different

Living on campus during the summer was difficult due to the lack of other students on campus. I also had to pay for housing which made my financial situation difficult. I had to work a second job to afford to continue my research.

Advice

Remember that doing research isn't easy. When your experiment fails, its ok to re-evaluate, re-design, and re-execute! That's what research is all about.

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Financial Services Intern

May - September 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I loved the atmosphere and energy working at Alma College. I also enjoyed being able to see Alma College from a different perspective than a student.

What I wish was different

Everything was great!

Advice

A piece of advice I would share about this experience is that you should never hold back when working for something you want to achieve.

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Admissions Ambassador

June - September 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I loved helping the admissions process and being a part of the college search process for a lot of high school students.

What I wish was different

I wish I was able to give more tours!

Advice

I just advise people to be as personable and friendly as possible to all families and have patience and understanding for those who may be new to the college process.

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Facilities Worker

June - August 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

I was able to work 40 hours and make more money than at my job back home. I really liked the people I was with the entire summer.

What I wish was different

It was a little unorganized because other people weren't communicating to facilities the correct number of kids for each camp or where they were going to be housed.

Advice

Even though it's a job I won't be doing in the future, it's a good experience to see what another department on the college does on a daily basis.

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Conference Manager

May - August 2018 • Alma, MI

What I liked

During my time as a Conference Manager I was able to work independently in problem solving situations which helped me develop more confidence as a leader.